Implantable infusion devices have been employed to treat a variety of diseases such as pain, spasticity, and cancer. For some medical conditions, medical devices provide the best, and sometimes the only, therapy to restore an individual to a more healthful condition and a fuller life.
Many infusion devices have a reservoir that houses a therapeutic composition. The therapeutic composition may be delivered via an infusion region of a catheter fluidly coupled to the reservoir. The therapeutic composition placed in the reservoir, and the target implant location of the delivery region, can be selected based on the disease to be treated. Often, the infusion devices are configured, so the reservoir can be replenished with the therapeutic composition through a septum of a refill port while the pump is implanted. This is commonly done by injecting a hypodermic needle through the skin and into the septum thereby providing access to refill the reservoir.
In such devices a catheter access port is often provided in addition to the refill port. The catheter access port is also accessible percutaneously by hypodermic needle. Its septum provides direct access to the catheter bypassing the reservoir and allows a bolus of a therapeutic composition to be administered directly into the body at the site of the catheter. The catheter access port can also be used as a diagnostic tool to troubleshoot the catheter or infusion problems.
While implantable infusion devices that have refillable reservoirs and catheter access ports are known, the therapeutic advantages of the use of the reservoirs in combination with the access ports to provide improved therapy has not been fully explored.